HE'S THE TARTAN SPARTAN

SCOTS star Gerard Butler gets mean and moody as he takes on the role of an ancient Greek king.

In the first pictures from his new movie 300, he holds off an invading Persian army to save Europe from invaders.

Digital trickery helps Butler look the part in the 2500-year-old Braveheartstyle role. With a dark animation background, the film reveals how heroic King Leonidas ordered his 300 Spartan troops to stop a million-strong Persian army at the Battle on Thermopylae in 480BC.

The special effects are the highlight of the movie - due out in March - which also stars Lena Headey

Butler, 36, said: "It's a phenomenal story. When you hear about it you think, 'Did this really happen?'